Buddy Meets Sassy

Mom is almost done with her dog stories. It would take a big book to tell everything about each dog. I don't want you to think that our whole life revolves around dogs, although it pretty much does. Mom's children are grown and the grandchildren live too far away to see them very often. Therefore, Skeeter and I try to make up for it. We keep her busy anyway.
Today her story is about me and how she got me.

We were pretty happy with our dog Buddy. Sometimes we took care of a neighbors dog too. Dusty, the neighbors dog, and Buddy got along just fine. They were used to walking together and visiting each other often. After all, we just lived next door.
One day another neighbor brought home a puppy. It was a six month old Cocker Spaniel. They would be it's third owner. These are nice people but should never own a pet, especially a dog. Anyway, they tied her to a small tree in the yard. No Shade, short rope, no way to defend herself and covered with fleas. I was really upset and so was my neighbor, Dusty's owner. We approached the other neighbor and told her that the puppy was not an outside dog. We told her she needed to provide shade, shelter etc for the dog or we would report her to the Humane Society.
A couple of days later, she told us she was not going to keep the dog and she was looking for another home for her. I couldn't stand the thought of this puppy being moved around from owner to owner. She already had been three places.
I told her if she was serious, I would take the dog and pay her whatever she had invested in the dog, no questions asked. She gave me a figure. I wrote out a check and took the dog into my home. Her name was Sandy, which quickly got changed to Sassy. She still is feisty so the name Sassy fits he well.
Buddy loved the new puppy. You would have thought we had bought her for him. He would hold her down with his big paw every morning and wash her face, ears and anything else he felt needed attention. She could do anything she wanted to him, pull his tail, jump over him. Anything to get him to play. Once in a while he would let her know he was still the Alpha dog around here.
Buddy got a new lease on life when she came. He became more active and acted more alert even with his health problems. I truly believe she extended his life by a couple of years.
The gentleman next door, Dusty's owner was ill and dying with cancer. He loved little Sassy and called her a doll baby. I took her over to see him almost every day. His face would light up when we came. Sassy would jump up on his lap and give him "Cocker Kisses". When he became bedridden we still came to visit. Sassy would run down the hall to his room, jump up on the bed and give him kisses.The day before he died she ran down to his room but there was no response from him. His wife put his hand on Sassy and he woke up and smiled.
Sassy and Buddy had several good years together. I guess that's why she missed him so much when he was gone. We all did.
Sassy is now the Alpha dog and Skeeter her best friend. Skeeter came to us from the Pet Rescue people.
I am looking forward to many Sassy and Skeeter adventures in the years to come. Sassy will continue to report on her blog and I will tell some stories from time to time too.

My quote for today is from all of us in this household

"We love happy endings."

Mom Finally Eats Out

Mom and Dad finally celebrated Mom's birthday by having dinner out. It was a place they had never been before. A friend told them about it. It's about 50 miles from here. They were going to ride on the motorcycles but it started to rain just before they left. They went by truck instead.
Mom said it was not a fancy place and quite small. The food however made the trip worthwhile. They are primarily a seafood place and they had everything. They were also very busy. If it had been nice they could have eaten outside. They will go there again. Too far to go real often but Mom brought home a doggie bag and I can't wait until they go back.

Today's quote is by Skeeter.

"Me Too"

More About Buddy

My Mom had a nice birthday. She got a book, candles, picture frame, flowers candy, cards etc. She didn't go out to dinner because she was too tired after working in the yard all day. She and Dad are going to a new place tonight. Someone told Dad about it. They are supposed to have good fish dinners. Mom loves fish.
Skeeter and I have been really good all week. It has been nice to have Mom home on vacation. She is going back to work next week. :(
Mom is still writing little stories about her dogs. Today she will continue with Buddy.

After taking care of a neighbors dog we realized how much we missed having a dog. By now we knew what we were in for by getting another dog. We went to several shelters to find one that really needed a home. Of course, they all do. Every time I go to a shelter I want to take them all home, but then sometimes there's that one special one. This time it was Buddy.
His real name was Sparky but the name did not fit him at all. We found out he had been mistreated and the spark was gone out of his life. He was in a cage with another dog that overpowered him. He was lying in a corner, somewhat interested in us but afraid to come to the edge of the cage. We asked if we could take him outside in their play area. He just walked around but showed no interest in anything. We decided if we didn't take him, probably no one would. We decided to take a chance.
The shelter warned us that the person who brought him in advised them that he was just over a year old, unhousbroken, destructive, and an outside dog. We put him in our van and the poor thing was so scared he got sick before we got him home. We didn't scold him. We stopped and cleaned up what we could with paper towels, told him it was OK.
We have a nice fenced in yard and that seemed to interest him. We let him walk around at will while we sat in chairs and let him go. He was friendly with me but aloof. That night he couldn't settle down so I took my pillow and a blanket and slept on the floor with him. By morning, we were friends.
It took a long time, almost a year before he fully trusted my husband. He was afraid of shoes. If they were lying between him and food he would starve to death. We gradually learned the things he feared and tried to cater to his feelings.
At one point I went away for a week and he and my husband were left alone together. He learned not to be afraid of the man that fed and walked him. How he loved his walks. We walked almost two miles twice a day, rain or shine, hot or cold.
Contrary to what we had been told about him, he never had an "accident" in the house. never destroyed anything, preferred to be in the house with us most of the time.
Like clockwork everyday he would go outside around noontime and lay in the sun. When that side got too hot, he would roll over until the other side got hot. Eventually we found that he had hip problems and arthritis. Apparently the sun felt good on his aching bones.
He would go for a ride in the van anytime he could. He usually just lay down in the back and napped but he was with us. That's what mattered.
He was a special dog. All my dogs have been special but Buddy was super special. The whole neighborhood knew him. He wagged his tail in greeting to everyone especially the "cookie lady". The cookie lady is a neighbor that walks but always has a pocket full on dog cookies. Buddy could spot her 1/2 mile away. He would sit down and refuse to move until she caught up with us.
Age began to creep up on Buddy and he couldn't walk as far anymore. We shortened our walks but we always went.
By now he was on medication for his joints and it was helping some. It never changed his good nature no matter how bad he felt. Sometimes when we were walking he would have to lay down and rest awhile. There are so many stories about all my dogs that it would take a book for each one.
More about Buddy next time.

Today's quote is by Isak Dinesen.

" I think these difficult times have helped me to understand better than before how infinitely rich and beautiful life is in every way and that so many things that one goes around worrying about are of no importance whatsoever."

Happy Birthday Mom

Tomorrow, Thursday, is Mom's birthday. I promised I wouldn't tell anyone how old she is. She already got some funny cards. My Mom likes funny cards.Dad will take her out to dinner tomorrow night.

Mom is taking care of our neighbors pool while she is away. She took Skeeter and I with her today. She accidentally dropped something in the pool so she took her shoes off and went in the pool clothes and all. She looked pretty funny because she had on white shorts and top. You could see right thru them when they got wet.

Mom's dog story today is not about one of her own but it's very important in influencing her to get another dog.



After loosing two dogs at once, we couldn't even think about another dog. After almost two year, we retired and moved to Florida. My husbands heart doctor thought it would be a good move. It did prove to be a very good move.

We met our new neighbors who owned a Cocker Spaniel. We got to know then very well. One day they mentioned they were going to put the dog, Dusty, in a kennel while they went away. We offered to take the dog. Dusty was at home at our house and we enjoyed having him. After leaving him with us on several occasions, we got to the point that we missed him after they came home. We decided to just check out the dogs at the shelters.

We finally found a year old dog, mostly yellow lab, who had been abused. It was love at first sight. I think it was because I'm an old softy and he needed someone who would not mistreat him.

The first night he could not settle down. I took my pillow and a blanket and laid on the floor with him. He cuddled up to me and never moved all night. We bonded completely.

Next time more about Buddy.

Another quote from Maya Angelou.

"I've learned that making a living is not the same thing as making a life."

Thor & Heidi

Mom worked in the yard today, then it got too hot.Skeeter cried the whole time she was in the front yard. He does that when he can't see her. He likes the backyard work so he can be out there too.Mom would fence in the front yard too, but it's against the rules where we live.


Last night Mom. Skeeter, and I took a walk in the rain. It wasn't raining hard but plenty hard enough to get wet.I heard Mom say once that it was romantic to walk in the rain. I think she's wrong because Dad just stayed in his recliner and watched TV.


Confidential to my human Sister. Miss Scarlett is due to have her puppies this weekend. Will keep you posted. They will eventually on the web site.





Back to Mom's stories





You'd think by now I could just say that ... and... and I lived happily ever after. Not so. Thor and Heidi were about 6 and 3 respectively. They had been living the good life. They had an insulated dog house that my husband had made. They got rides in the car. Weather permitting they got walks.


One day Thor started limping. In checking it out we found a lump in his paw. Off to the vet who didn't like the looks of it, We left Thor there for a day and the vet removed it. It was cancerous and it appeared that the vet had got it all.


Heidi began to urinate in the house. Just small puddles as she would be asking to go out. We figured she had a weak bladder perhaps. The wetting got worse and Heidi was so mortified she didn't want to come in the house any more. She would lay outside and lick herself clean.


We took Heidi to the vet as there was no visible evidence of any problem. The vet pronounced her okay and gave us some medicine. I forgot what it was called but it sometimes worked on people with the same problem. Unfortunately it did not work. We tried to keep her happy by giving her several towels to lay on when she was in the house.


I don't remember how much time had passed but one day she seemed to be bothered by being wet and was licking frantically at herself. I thought maybe a warm bath would help her feel better. That's when I discovered a lump partly inside her rectum. We took her to the vet and he took a biopsy. By the time we got the results of the biopsy, the growth had reached the size of a baseball.


While we were wondering what would be our next course of action, Thor's cancer was back. He was in danger of loosing his paw. The vet gave us a dim future for Heidi.


In the meantime my husband was having serious heart problems. He had a pacemaker implant in 1989 which kept his heart going. He was having problems doing work in the cold.


Each day brought a dimmer future for both dogs. We talked to the vet and he agreed that it was only a matter of time before each one would be put to sleep. They had become inseparable.


With the vet's input, we decided to put both dogs to sleep together. We didn't think one would last much longer without the other. We wanted to spare them the agony of pain cancer would bring as well as separation.


A very caring vet put them to sleep together.


It was almost more than we could bear. We couldn't stay in the house when we weren't working. Dog dishes and toys were everywhere.We put them away.





My quote for today is by my Mom.



"I don't want any more dogs. I can't go through this again."

Heidi

Although today was Sunday, we did not get to nap with Mom and Dad. They took advantage of the cooler (87) day to get some work done in the yard. Skeeter and I went out too but I personally don't understand the difference between weeds and flowers. Good thing Mom does.
I don't like getting all dirty and sweaty anyway. Skeeter loves to get in the bushes. When Mom is on her hands and knees pulling weeds he comes right around the bushes to give her a kiss. Sometimes he startles her because he is so hard to see.

Last time Mom told her sad story about Hans, and how sad Thor was. A friends dog had puppies so the inevitable happened. We adopted a female. We named her Heidi. She was mostly Shepard although very light in color. We were told her father was a rare albino Shepard.
Thor loved Heidi from the minute he saw her. He adopted her and took care of her education. Heidi never had an accident in the house. Thor would let us know, even at 3AM that we better let that puppy out.
Heidi would hold on to Thor's tail just as he had held on to Hans. It wasn't long before we could see that she was going to be bigger than Thor.
Heidi loved to play and would often get into trouble. She was too big to run and play in the house but that didn't seem to bother her. She buried her toys and cookies under the cushions of the sofa.
They both loved to walk and were so good and gentle that I always walked both of them at the same time. One day while on their walk, I fell and broke my ankle. No one stopped to see if I needed help. Now wouldn't you think that someone would have noticed a woman sitting on the sidewalk with two big dogs and think maybe she needed help. Nope, not even my husband, who drove right by looking at the other side of the street. I was MAD. I didn't think it was possible to walk on a broken bone but it is. However, after 1/2 mile on it, it was so swollen I couldn't get my shoe off when I got home.
Thor didn't like to get wet and Heidi learned to turn on the water spigot in their kennel. I would get home and Thor would be sitting in the corner of the doghouse while the kennel was getting flooded.
After we fixed that problem Heidi began digging under the porch which was attached to the kennel. We fixed that by putting lattice work all around the bottom of the porch. That lasted a short time before Heidi figured out that the lattice was easy to tear apart and she and Thor could escape by digging under the porch. What fun to run free, except we lived in town on a busy street. How they never got injured is a miracle.
Heidi became the brains of the two and no matter what we did she managed to find a way out in time. Apparently she became bored and stopped getting out.
Next time, all is not a bed of roses.

My quote for today is by George Eliot

"What do we live for, if it is not to make life less difficult for each other?"

A Sad Story

If you read this blog you already know my Mom is writing a little piece on each of the dogs she has owned. Today she is writing a sad story on which I have no comment except that I know my Mom has loved all her dogs and has always spared no expense to keep them happy and healthy.
I wasn't around when she had small children but from some of the stories I've heard she always did her best for them. Mom has two children, besides me and Skeeter. They are all grown up now. Maybe I can get her to write about them when she is done with her dog stories.

In my last story about Hans and Thor, I forgot to tell of in incident with Hans before we got Thor. I did mention that he was getting out of his kennel. It was happening more and more. We were at our wits end trying to find out how he was getting out. The kennel had a cement floor. It was fenced in with six foot fencing. There were no holes in the fence.
One day, when we were both off from work, we decided to put him in the kennel and ignore him. We took turns watching him. When he began to get restless and pace, we knew he was about to make his move. Sure enough he CLIMBED up the fence. He perched himself on the top until he got his balance and then jumped down into the yard. Now if you can just picture a 110 lb dog perched on top of a fence with four paws on one 2 x 4.
He looked like some kind of prehistoric vulture. We replaced the fencing with chain link and that was the end of his adventures. The funny thing was that he was not trying to run away and was often waiting for us on the front porch.
Hans and Thor got along real well. When he was little, Thor could not keep up with Hans so he used to hang on to Hans tail. They were real buddies and were seldom separated.
One Sunday, when Hans was nine years old, he had a stroke. We tried to get hold of our vet to no avail. He did not seem to be in any discomfort but he could not get up or stand alone. For the rest of the day we carried him in and out so he could go to the bathroom. We would take him to the vet first thing in the AM.
When I told my sister P we were going to put him to sleep the next day, she wanted to come say goodbye to him. When she got there we had him outside on the lawn. He loved to be outside. When he saw her he tried to drag himself to get a ball. She always played ball with him. We all cried.
The next day we took him to the vet. They asked us to pay up front so we could leave after the deed was done. We did. Our vet was not in that day but his partner was there. We asked him to put the dog to sleep because we did not want to see him suffer any more. He tried three times and either the needle broke, he couldn't find a vein etc. My husband called him an SOB for putting the dog through so much trauma. He picked up the dog and carried him back to the car. We had a station wagon and had put the seat down. Some of the medicine had been injected so the dog was half dead.
We finally located an emergency vet by phone. I was hysterical thinking the dog was suffering. They calmed me down and explained that the dog was not suffering. Since some of the medicine had been injected the dog was in no pain. The medicine is actually a strong dose of pain killer.
When we arrived at the emergency clinic, the staff could not have been kinder. They came out to the car with a stretcher and very gently loaded him on and carried him inside. We talked to the vet for a few minutes and then held the dog in our arms until the medicine did its deed.
Thor was devastated at the loss of his friend and brother. He would sit in the yard and howl. Now we always thought Thor was part wolf. He had the look and to hear him wail would curdle your blood.
The only solution was to get Thor a puppy.

My quote for today is from Agatha Christie.

"But surely for everything you love you have to pay some price."

Vacation?

Last May when Mom's boss asked everybody to fill out a vacation schedule, Mom signed up for the last two weeks of July. Our dogsitter had to go away and with the price of gas, Mom is going to stay home. She plans to get a lot done but I'll bet she doesn't get everything done.

She is playing around with a sort mystery novel. Such complicated stories take time and you can't write unless you feel like it.

Mom is also trying to get a story to submit for the Writer's Club.

Tomorrow is Saturday and she better finish up by Sunday.

Today Mom and Dad did some yard work. Hot, Hot, Hot.
Mom's next story about her dogs follow.

My husband and I have just taken in another "Free" dog. We decide to take him to the vet as we were told he had never had his shots. We were also told this dog was well over a year old.We named him Hans.
The vet was a good vet but spoke with an accent that was hard to understand. I told him the story about getting the dog. "Not year old. Nine months puppy."
"You mean he will get bigger?" I asked.
"Of course," said the vet. "Look at feet. Nine months puppy.
He was right of course. Nine months puppy later turned into 110 pound dog. Fortunately he was a gentle dog who loved to play. He had a few games he played by himself. One seemed to be to see how many tennis balls he could get in his mouth a one time. A
Another game he liked to play was to put his paw on a tennis ball and sink it in his kiddie pool. When he let go of it, it would pop up to the top and he would grab it in a motion something like diving for apples.
He had a kiddie pool because he kept tipping over his water bowl and would be without water until we got home. He learned the pool was a good place to cool off and was often seen lying down in his pool.
It wasn't long before he found a way to get out of his kennel. We thought someone was letting him out. He would usually be lying on the front porch waiting for us. However, this was not always the case. He got picked up several times for running loose. One day when my mother was taking care of him at my house, a cruiser drove into the yard and there was Hans Sitting up in the back seat enjoying the ride. My poor mother got a warning.
Another game was to drop a ball in front of the lawnmower. Somewhere, sometime he knew we would stop, pick it up and throw it. He would do this until we were done mowing or locked him up.
There are lot's of stories about Hans. We had him for nine years.
During that time, one of the young men who worked for my husband had to give up their dog.It was a puppy about 6 months old. They had a little girl and a new baby. The dog was not housebroken and was too much for the mother to handle. We took him with the stipulation that if the little girl missed him too much, we would give him back. This offer was good for one month.
We knew this one would grow and he did until he was as big as Hans
He had already been named Thor. He new his name and we liked it.
More about Hans & Thor next time.

My quote for today is also by Maya Angelou.

"I've learned that no matter what happens, or how bad it seems today. life does go on, and it will be better tomorrow."

Happy Birthday Sid

Our good friend had a birthday on Monday. Mom made him a carrot cake using Splenda. There are several diabetics in our little circle of friends and buddies. Mom knows there are still carbs to be counted but using Splenda helps to cut down on the "NO, NO's".

Too bad they hadn't invented Splenda when Mom owned the restaurant,she had several vegetarian choices but no deserts for diabetics.

Mom left off on her stories after selling the restaurant and having to give away their dogs. She and Dad took their sailboat and headed south. That whole experience including the people they met along the way could make a book in itself.

Several years passed, Mom and Dad were back and had put some money from the sale if the Inn in the bank. There was enough for a down payment on a house and to buy a car. They bought an old house and began to restore it. Out came windows, walls, floors etc. All this mess while they were living in it. I heard Mom tell someone that at one point there were no walls between rooms, not even the bathroom. No peeking!

Well, on to next story......



We had a house with a lot of land for a dog. Off we went to the pound where we got a beautiful German Shepard. We put up a sort of kennel in a shady spot of the yard. This dog dug himself out as fast as we could fill in the holes. One day my husband lugged some big rocks and filled in the holes and put the rest around the bottom of the fence.

Before my husband walked back into the house that @$%^* dog was out and gone. He pulled out those stones as if they were pebbles. Using his front paws, he just scooped them out.

We decided we were going to have to dig out around the fence and fill it with cement. Since we didn't have a chance before we left for work, we put him in the garage for the day. Plenty of food, water, and a blanket to sleep on. What more could he want? Freedom, which he got when he dove through the garage window.

We fixed the kennel again and for several days he was in it when we got home. My husband put a leash on him to walk him to the house. That dog lit out like his tail was on fire. He was headed for the house. My husband barely touched the ground trying to hold on to that dog. Tomorrow it's your turn said the man of the house.

Much to everyone's surprise he walked like an angel with me.

We decided we had better find another home for him before he scared the neighborhood to death. He was friendly but when he ran toward you at 30MPH with his teeth showing. Most people didn't believe he was just trying to greet them. I wasn't sure myself. We put an ad in the paper. Free to good home. Needs lots of room to run. We found him a nice home. I never have given a dog to another person without checking them out.

We did not have him long. Maybe 2-3 weeks.


Dad and I were living, working, and trying to restore an old house.

One day may sister, Susan, showed up at my door with a young dog.

He was part black lab and part something quite large. "Do you want another dog she asked. We listened to the sob story of how and why he needed a home and she couldn't take him.

He was kind of cute in a gangly sort of way. I thought, well he's not a puppy so he wouldn't be getting bigger. Right?

Next time, the nine month old puppy.



My quote for today is by Maya Angelou.



"I've learned that people will f0rget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel."

Fritz and Buddy #1

We just had a noisy thunder shower. I don't want you to think I am a baby but when the thunder and lightening are booming and crashing out there I get in my Mom's lap. I know she can't do anything about it but I feel so much better when she holds me. It's like I really feel she would protect me.
The noise doesn't bother Skeeter but if I get in Mom's lap he wants to get in her lap too. It gets a little crowded. Mom just loves us both.
Yesterday she began writing about Buddy #1. This story is about Fritz and Buddy.

The time came when we were very tired of working such long hours at the Inn. Along came a gentleman who informed us we had the kind of place he had been looking for. One thing led to another and we sold it to him for three times what we paid for it.
We went on a trip to search for a sailboat that we could live on.Gas was hard to get so many people had switched to sailing instead of power boating. It was hard to find what we wanted.
Eventually we did find a nice sloop. We packed up what we needed plus two large dogs.It didn't take us long to learn that you cannot unhousebreak a dog. When they had to relieve themselves they jumped overboard and swam for shore. My husband tried to show them it was OK to pee on the bow of the boat. They just looked at him like he was going to catch it from Me.
After several days of taking them to shore and/or pulling them out of the water in the dead of night, we decided this would never work.
We took our dogs to our friend the dog warden. He promised to keep them himself if he could not find suitable homes.
The good news was that he found excellent homes for both dogs and he kept track of their well being for a while.
Fritz went to live with a gentleman who owned a truck and Buddy#1 went to live with a family that had two little girls. They fell in love with Buddy while they were on vacation near our friends cottage. Their father came down to see our friend and begged him to sell Buddy. Our friend told him Buddy was not for sale but was free to a good home. Two little girls were happy and so was Buddy.
We missed them both but we were relieved that they both had good homes.
We were dogless again.

Today's quote is by Gloria Steinem.

"The problem for all of us, men and women, is not to learn, but to unlearn."

Buddy #1

Mom is trying to write some more stories but she thinks she has writers block, whatever that is. At least she is still writing about all her dogs. I should feel jealous that she has loved so many dogs but I am also happy because she rescued me too. She will be telling that story in time.


Today she is writing about Buddy #1.


I already wrote about buying an Inn and how we got a dog named Fritz, Fritz was a she and we never knew much about her background. We did learn that she loved to ride in the truck and she was a good watchdog.


A friend of ours was the dog warden for the town. That meant whenever there was a stray or a problem dog people called him.


One day he called us and asked if we could take in a stray dog. Without knowing why, we said yes. He arrived with a skinny, mostly golden lab male. He had a rope burn around his neck and he was very frightened.

Fritz seemed to calm him down. Maybe she could communicate with him and told him he would be safe with us.


He filled out with some good cooking. After all this was a restaurant. There were always a few scraps as well as dog food.


Buddy settled in with us and he and Fritz became friends. He never got over his fear of loud noises or fire. He was even afraid when I lit a cigarette. Yeah, I was stupid and smoked.


Buddy liked to ride in the truck too. In fact we took a long trip with both dogs. One night all four of us slept in the back of the pickup truck in sleeping bags. We had a thunderstorm during the night and Buddy was terrified of the loud noise. He did his best to get into the sleeping bags

Today's quote is by Kate Halverson.

"If you are all wrapped up in yourself, you are overdressed."

Fritz

This morning Mom was tired so we all went back to bed for about an hour. We normally get up around 5:30 AM. We went for a walk, ate breakfast and then Mom said "Who wants to take a nap?" There was a stampede to the bedroom and we all, including Dad slept for another hour. Now Mom is up and eating raisins for energy so we better stay out of her way until the "High" wears off.

As promised here is the next installment about Mom's dogs.

Fritz

After we gave away our little Boston Terrier, Kim, we were without a dog for a couple of years. During that time, we helped some friends who had just bought a small Inn in the Berkshires, in Massachusetts. We had some experience in cooking for restaurants and doing some catering. They had none. We went to their Inn and helped do some heavy cooking. Within a couple of weeks they decided they couldn't handle it. We bought it from them. That's another whole story or two that maybe I'll get into some other time.

The Inn consisted of a bar, restaurant and rooms. This was kind of a local place so most of our business was repeat customers. The Inn was on the main street at the foot of a mountain. A developer bought the land on the mountain and proceeded to build expensive second homes. Many of the workers came to our place for meals.

One of the men came to our place almost every day. He frequented the bar often. His dog would follow him and we started letting the dog into the bar. She would lie in the corner and just watch everyone. Her master would have too much to drink and leave without the dog. She didn't mind. When the bar closed for the night my husband would take the dog home in our truck. We had heard that the dog's owner mistreated her when he was drinking but we never saw it.

He did not know the background of the dog only that he got her at a shelter. She was a mix breed with plenty of German Shepard in her.

One day he and the dog came into the bar. He had already had a few too many. He accused us of trying to steal his dog. He said she would rather be with us and with him so he gave us the dog. My husband immediately bought her a new collar and license. She sensed that this was her new home and never went back up the mountain to see him. She was friendly to all who came into the Inn. For health reasons, we had to insist that she not be allowed in the dining room.

One family that came in every weekend had four children. They would coax Fritz into the dining room and hide her under the table. There they would slip her bits of food so she was very quiet. There were also a few other customers that did the same.

No matter how friendly she was when the Inn was open, the minute we locked the front door for the night she took it upon herself to become our night watchman. One step onto the large front porch by friend or foe would put her snarling at the glass front door. No one in their right mind would have tried to enter.

She usually occupied the corner next to the piano in the bar. If my husband went to bed early and I kept the bar open, she would move to the opening behind the bar. There she would lay until the last customer left and I locked the front door.

One of her favorite things was to go for a ride in the truck. We had to take our own trash to the dump so first thing every morning Fritz and Dad made the dump run. Dad had a plow for the truck and when it snowed he plowed our parking lot and several others for friends with Fritz sitting up on the passenger seat.

Y'all remember snow don't ya. I remember it but have no desire to see it again.

I wasn't long before we got another dog, our first "Buddy." That will be my next story

Today's quote is by George Eliot.

"Animals are such agreeable friends-
they ask no questions,
they pass no criticisms."

Success

Mom and Sister D got my e-mail working. It wasn't as simple as it seemed but I finally got my first e-mail.

Mom is off work until Friday but she is busy trying to catch up on the things she has wanted to get done. First came the venetian blinds in the guest room. Skeeter had jumped into the chair, then on the back of the chair, then on a small end table, sending one of Mom's favorite antique vases to the floor unbroken thank goodness. When he got on the end table he stuck his head and two front paws through the slats, breaking several of course. When Mom walked up the driveway he was just hanging there looking out the window. Fortunately the blind had never been shortened, too lazy, so there were enough slats to replace the broken ones.

This morning she re potted a Ficus tree that has grown too big to get in the house anymore. She put it into a huge pot and will move it into the garage if a freeze or frost is expected. Guess that won't be for a while.

She frets over her plants almost as much as she does us.

Next blog will be about the next dog in Mom's life, Fritz.

Today's quote is by Emily Dickenson

"Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul.
And sings the tune
Without the words.
And never stops at all."

I'm sorry to say, my human sister returned to her home in Chicago Sunday. Mom and Dad took her to the airport at 6:00 AM. Skeeter and I went back to bed.

We miss her already. We kept her busy trying to give each of us equal attention. There were a few jealous moments, especially on my part. Yesterday I snapped at Skeeter and gave him a little bite. My dad let me know immediately that I am not the Big Dog in this pack. He is. My feelings were hurt but I am feeling better today. Mom took a nap with both of us.

We will be getting back to the stories my Mom was telling about all the dogs she has owned and loved.

Today, Monday, Mom is working so it will be a long day for Skeeter and me.



Today's quote is by Henry Van Dyke.


"Time is
Too slow for those who wait,
Too swift for those who fear,
Too long for those who grieve
Too short for those who rejoice,
But for those who love,
Time is not."

BOOM

Today is the 4th of July. I expect there will be lots of booms no matter where you live. I will be hiding in the closet. Skeeter will probably come with me. He's not afraid of noises as much as I am but I'm teaching him.

My Mom and Human sister went swimming in the neighbors pool this morning. I went to the edge but I know better than to let my Mom put me in that water. She put Skeeter in a couple of times. I don't think he was crazy about it but he didn't panic like I did the first time I went in.

Sister D will be here until Sunday. We will miss her. In the meantime we get lots of hugs and kisses from her.

Mom, Dad and Sister will probably go see the fireworks if it doesn't rain. I mentioned once before the weird logic of humans. They immersed their whole body in water to swim yet they don't want to get wet watching fireworks.

Today's quote is by Roger Carras.

"Dogs have given us absolute all. We are the center of their universe. We are the focus of their love and faith and trust. They serve us in return for scraps. It is without a doubt the best deal man has ever made."

She's Here

My human sister got here on Thursday night. Her plane was held up in Chicago because of bad thunderstorms. She finally got here an hour later than originally scheduled. Not too bad!

She finally got to meet Skeeter. Skeeter loves her as much as I do. Every time she pets Skeeter I just squeeze myself in there too. Good thing there are only two dogs in this house.

Mom had to work a couple of days so we got to spend some time with D.

D. went swimming in the neighbors pool and got sunburned. She will have to wear a t-shirt if she goes in today.

Today is Sunday. Mom is always home on Sunday. This morning she made sausage and blueberry pancakes.

Today's quote is by Margaret Abigail Walker.

"Love stretches your heart and makes you big inside"